Curtain-roller.



E. E. WHITMORE.

CURTAIN ROLLER.

APPLIoATIoN FILED 0012.29, 191s.

1,097,957, Y Patented May 26, 1914.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

EDWARD E. WHITMO'RE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 THE CURTAIN SUPPLY COMPANY, 0F NEWARK, .NEW JERSEY, .A CORPORATION yOF NEW JERSEY.

CURTAIN-ROLLER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 26, 1914.

Application filed October 29, 1913. Serial No. 797,970.

To vall whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, EDWARD E. WHIT- ironE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Curtain-Rollers, of which the following is a specification.

In curtain rollers heretofore, it has been customary to employ a gravity-actuated pawl mounted on the barrel of the roller and adapted to coperate with a notch,

shoulder, or other suitable retaining-means on the roller spindle or shaft, whereby the spring in the roller might be wound up by turning the barrel about the spindle and maintained under tension by the pawl engaging the notch. After the roller had been mounted in the suppo-rts in the window-casing it was customary to release the pawl so to render available the action of the spring in winding up the roller and curtain. In other words, the pawl and notch were employed to prevent the wound-up spring from iin-winding during the installation of the curtain and roller. In the past, it has been usual to depend upon the centrifugal force developed by the rotating-roller during the descent or elevation of the curtain to prevent the pawl from again engaging the notch and thereby so locking the parts together as to render the action of the spring unavailable on the roller, in fact, locking the barrel stationary. Much trouble has been encountered in devices of this kind because during slow rotation of the roller the pawl would drop into the notch, the centrifugal force being insufficient to hold it out, thus locking the two parts together instead of allowing the spring free action. To reduce this difliculty as much as posssible, it has been considered desirable to insert the spindle in the window-casing socket in such position that the notch would be down, thereby securing the action of gravit-y to assist the centrifugal force in keeping the pawl away from the notch. Workmen, however, are frequently careless and when the spindle was put into the socket with the notch up instead of down, as not infrequently occurred, the troubles referred to were quite sure to be encountered. 'The main object of the present invention is to overcome these difficulties by providing a simple structure the manner of insertion of the spindle of which in the supporting-socket is quite immaterial, that is to say, the workman need pay no particular attention as to how it is inserted so long as it is well seated in place. A further object of the device is not to depend upon gravity or centrifugal force as a means of holding the pawl retracted, the latter force, of course, varying in intensity according to the speed of rotation of the roller.

These, with other objects and advantages will be made apparent to those skilled in .the art from a consideration of the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification.

In these drawings: Figure 1 is an illustration of a window equipped with a curtain roller and curtain-retaining device at the lower end of the curtain adapted to grip the window-frame or guides so that the curtain may be maintained lowered at any desired position, the friction of t-he parts preventing the spring of the roller from drawing the curtain up; Fig. 2 is an end view partly in section of my improved curtain roller showing the barrel and spindle locked together by the pawl, and Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the manner in which the pawl is retracted, permitting the action of the spring of the roller to exert itself on the barrel.

My improved roller is equipped with a spindle or shaft 10 having a flattened or spear end 11 adapted to fit in the windowcasing socket, and, because of its flattened condition, to hold the spindle or shaft against rotation, as is customary in curtain structures of this character. The roller also has a cylindrical barrel-or tube 12 supplied with an end closure 13 having a bearing on the spindle so as to be revoluble thereon. Pivoted on this disk or closure 13 at 14 I employ a pawl 15y having a tooth 16 adapted to enter a notch 17 in the spindle. The rear end of pawl 15 has fastened thereto a leaf spring 1S, the free end of which bears against the barrel of a flange on the closure 13. The barrel is also supplied with a recess or notch 19 opposite pawl 15 for a purpose hereinafter indicated.

The device is operated substantially as follows: The spring, (not shown, of the usual kind within the curtain-roller is wound up or put under tension by turning the barrel or tube 12 about the shaft or spindle 10, the latter being held stationary during such rotation, bringing about the winding up of the internal spring. When suiicient tension has been placed on the spring the operator by means of a nail, lead pencil, or similar device inserted through the recess 19, pushes the pawl 15 inwardly against the retracting action of the spring 18, causing the pawl tooth 16 to engage in the catch or notch 17, and the cooperation between this pawl and the spindle prevents the unwinding of the spring; that is, prevents the turning of the barrel or tube on the spindle in the direction which the spring tends to rotate it. The parts remain locked in this position during the installation of the. roller in its fixture, and after the curtain has been thus properly installed, no attention being paid as to the exact position in which the insertion of the spear end 1l in the socket of the fixture brings the notch 17. Then by pulling down the curtain slightly, that is, unwinding the roller, the turning of the latter by the action of the one wall of the notch 17 on the rear beveled :tace of the tooth 1G retracts the pawl and relieves it from the holding influence of the internal spiral spring in the roller. As soon as it is thus released, the spring 18 is strong enough to retract it still farther to the position shown in Fig. 3 in which position it remains permanently, the curtain being held in adjusted position against the infiuence of the spring in the roller, tending to wind up by the pressure feet 20, 20, acting against the casing retractably, when it is desired to raise or lower the curtain by the finger pieces 21.

It should be clear from this description and illustration that neither gravity nor centrifugal force is depended upon to keep the pawl retracted in such a position that it cannot engage with the spindle, the employment of the spring eliminating the necessity of care in inserting the curtainroller in its iixtures and doing away with the inconvenience of improper installation.

Various minor mechanical changes may be made in the structure herein shown and described, without departure from the substance of the invention. For instance, a mere reversal of parts might be employed, the pawl being' mounted on the spindle rather than on the barrel and cooperating with a notch, shoulder, or the like, on the latter. Inasmuch as such reversal is quite obvious I have deemed it unnecessary to illustrate the same in detail.

I claim:

1. In a curtain roller, the combination of a spindle adapted to be engaged against rotation in a supporting bracket, a spring actuated barrel enveloping the spindle and rotatable relatively thereto, a detent` carried by one of the relatively rotatable members and adapted to engage the other to temporarily lock the two against relative rotation, and means tending to move the detent out of operative engagement, substantially as described.

2. In a curtain roller, the combination of a spindle adapted to be engaged in a supporting bracket and held thereby against rotation, a spring actuated barrel enveloping the spindle and rotatable relatively thereto, a detent carried by one of the relatively rotatable members and adapted to engage the other to temporarily lock the two against relative rotation, and means tending to move the detent out of operative engagement, said detent being accessible in the mounted position of the roller, substantially as described.

3. In a curtain roller, the combination ot a spindle adapted to be engaged in a supporting bracket and held against rotation thereby, a spring actuated barrel enveloping the spindle and rotatable ielatively thereto, a pawl carried by the barrel and adapted to engage the spindle to temporarily lock the two against relative rotation, and a spring tending to move the pawl out of operative engagement, said pawl being accessible in the mounted position of the roller, substantially as described.

4. In a curtain roller, the combination of a spindle adapted to be engaged in a supporting bracket and held against rotation thereby, a spring actuated barrel enveloping the spindle and rotatable relatively thereto, a pawl pivoted on said barrel and adapted to engage the shoulder or" the spindle to temporarily lock the barrel and spindle against relative rotation, and a leaf spring accommodated within said barrel and tending to hold the pawl out of operative engagement withv the shoulder of the spindle, said barrel being apertured to render said pawl accessible in the mounted position of the roller, whereby the pawl may be pushed inwardly into coperative relation with the spindle shoulder in opposition to the action of the leaf spring, whereby the roller may be demounted from the bracket without the barrel spring unwinding, substantiallyv as described.

EDWARD E. wHiTMoRE.

Witnesses:

WALTER M. FULLER, W. H. FoRsYTH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

